Medical marijuana dispensaries in Loveland nearly went up in smoke Tuesday night as the Loveland City Council considered permanently opting out of the state's new medical marijuana provisions.
Rather than formalizing a full opt out, the Council extended an eight-month moratorium on new dispensaries and sought two proposed ordinances for review at a July 20 meeting.
One ordinance will propose to have the city adopt a temporary opt out, allowing Loveland voters the chance to share their thoughts on the issue during a November election.
The second ordinance will propose adopting a permanent opt out of medical marijuana provisions for the city.
In June, the City Council moved to have the question of allowing medical marijuana dispensaries in the community placed on a November ballot.
However, during Tuesday's meeting, most of the City Council stepped back from that approach and showed preliminary interest in fully opting out of the state's provisions.
"For myself, I'm ready to quit acting like this legislation is something I want to honor or support in our community," Councilwoman Donna Rice said. "At this point, I've seen enough. I've heard enough. I've heard from my constituents. It's time to stop this."
Discussions and debate about medical marijuana have cropped up in cities and towns across the state following passage of Amendment 20, Colorado's voter-approved measure that created a medical marijuana system, a subsequent proliferation of dispensaries and the recent passage of House Bill 1284 and Senate Bill 109 that require dispensaries to be licensed at the state and local levels.
During Tuesday's meeting, 16-year Loveland resident Nancy Ulibarri encouraged the City Council to stick with plans to have residents vote on the issue.
"I think that since this is such a controversial, hot-button issue, it's something that you should let Loveland's citizens decide," Ulibarri said. "It's not right to have nine people make a decision for the rest of us on this issue."
Ulibarri, who suffers from chronic pain, said she is opposed having medical marijuana dispensaries in Loveland because they provide too many opportunities for abuse.
For Loveland police Chief Luke Hecker, abuse was a central theme as he spoke to the City Council about his desire to see Loveland opt out of the state's provisions.
"These days, we are seeing far more pharmaceutical drug abuse in this country," Hecker said. "If this drug is made legal and it becomes available in wide areas of our community, our children will see this and it will be normalized. In this time when substance abuse is skyrocketing, we just don't need this."
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Loveland Connection
Author: Kelley King
Copyright: 2010 Loveland Connection
Rather than formalizing a full opt out, the Council extended an eight-month moratorium on new dispensaries and sought two proposed ordinances for review at a July 20 meeting.
One ordinance will propose to have the city adopt a temporary opt out, allowing Loveland voters the chance to share their thoughts on the issue during a November election.
The second ordinance will propose adopting a permanent opt out of medical marijuana provisions for the city.
In June, the City Council moved to have the question of allowing medical marijuana dispensaries in the community placed on a November ballot.
However, during Tuesday's meeting, most of the City Council stepped back from that approach and showed preliminary interest in fully opting out of the state's provisions.
"For myself, I'm ready to quit acting like this legislation is something I want to honor or support in our community," Councilwoman Donna Rice said. "At this point, I've seen enough. I've heard enough. I've heard from my constituents. It's time to stop this."
Discussions and debate about medical marijuana have cropped up in cities and towns across the state following passage of Amendment 20, Colorado's voter-approved measure that created a medical marijuana system, a subsequent proliferation of dispensaries and the recent passage of House Bill 1284 and Senate Bill 109 that require dispensaries to be licensed at the state and local levels.
During Tuesday's meeting, 16-year Loveland resident Nancy Ulibarri encouraged the City Council to stick with plans to have residents vote on the issue.
"I think that since this is such a controversial, hot-button issue, it's something that you should let Loveland's citizens decide," Ulibarri said. "It's not right to have nine people make a decision for the rest of us on this issue."
Ulibarri, who suffers from chronic pain, said she is opposed having medical marijuana dispensaries in Loveland because they provide too many opportunities for abuse.
For Loveland police Chief Luke Hecker, abuse was a central theme as he spoke to the City Council about his desire to see Loveland opt out of the state's provisions.
"These days, we are seeing far more pharmaceutical drug abuse in this country," Hecker said. "If this drug is made legal and it becomes available in wide areas of our community, our children will see this and it will be normalized. In this time when substance abuse is skyrocketing, we just don't need this."
NewsHawk: Ganjarden: 420 MAGAZINE
Source: Loveland Connection
Author: Kelley King
Copyright: 2010 Loveland Connection
